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Is support easy...?
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I know this is gonna get dislikes, and I am not trying to be rude but League is my first moba and I climbed to platinum in 3 months playing mostly enchanters since they are so fun, stopped and now I am trying to learn adc. It's not going too well but in support I do so fkin good. It made me curious, surely support is giga broken if I can first time support and get to platinum in that amount of time.. For clarification I played everyday League and binge watched challenger League of Legend support games(I am autistic and get these hyper obsessions, don't know if that's the term). Either way what do u guys think? I feel like support is so broken, u are the one who carries lane face, and u are the one who can base whenever and be whereever. This role is so fun and calm yet so impactful as well, and controlling vision too.. It's starting to make me feel boosted tbh. Main supports are Senna, Soraka and specially Milio the most
Top Comment: What is your definition of easy? Every role is hard in their own way. Jungle is hard in the sense that it requires a lot of macro and game sense to make the right plays Top lane is hard in the sense that it requires good wave manipulation and in depth knowledge about matchups ADC is hard in the sense that it requires good mechanical skill Mid and support are hard in the sense that it requires a bit of everything
In online gaming what does "support" mean to you?
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I'm an avid support player, play it in most games that has it as an option, that or a summoner, needless to say I like watching other people do the dirty work while I'm on the side-lines cheering them on and making them stronger.
But support is such an umbrella term, you have healers, enhancers, shields, de-buffs and cc, tanks, movement manipulation and more.
It got me curious. What does support or the aspect of supporting mean to YOU? When you think of "Thats a support" what comes to mind? Is it someone that just keeps you healed and topped up? Is it someone who has your back and keeps threats away from you or is it something else?
Top Comment: buffer, debuffer, healer, and someone that usually handle mechanic in boss or raid fight.
What defines a support?
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So, ADC main here and me and my duo were talking about what makes a support a support because I enjoy playing pantheon, Ashe, and Vel’Koz as supports but he says they arent “real” supports.
What is the definition of a support and are my picks valid?
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- Ability to make or help enable plays. This can be through CC, buffs, zoning, sustain or some form of strong utility.
- Low gold reliance/high base values. Supports can’t farm, so they have to make do with cheap support items. And not many at that. Many supports won’t see past 2-3 items by end game.
- Strong early (usually). This is to make up for the bot laner’s usually weaker early game, and carry them through it. Even Sona has decent damage in the first few levels. Senna’s a bit of an outlier though admittedly, through her unique kit.
If they can do all that, then sure. I’d say they make a decent support.
What is support and why is it important?
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Can someone please explain to me like a 2 year old who has never stepped foot in a music/vocal class what support is in terms of vocals and why its important.
I've never heard of this term used so much except in kpop. In the other genres I listen to if I say this person is a good singer, people just agree or disagree and move on.
But in kpop if I say, I think someone is a good singer I'll get hundreds of comments telling me they are not good because they can't support. On the other hand, if I say I don't like someone's voice I'll get a thousand essay comments on why I'm wrong because they can support.
So can someone please tell me what the heck support is and why it seems to be the end all in determining whether someone is a good singer in kpop. With examples please.
Top Comment: You definitely would hear the word support if you hund around more vocal-centred musicians (like the og pop divas, the debate about vocals is never-ending). You can like whatever voice you want and that is fine. However vocal technique which is usually discussed when evaluating a good vocalist has some criteria - breath control or support being perhaps the most essential. A lot of it comes from opera singing, which has a lot more rules and specifics, but many do carry over into the modern pop scene and are described as standards - which is why people use that to evaluate singers. If they were singing other genres the evaluation would be different. In general, support is as mentioned just breath control - you either don't control it - sound very breathy and without "strength". While if you have breath control, which I actually think should be renamed diaphragm control, you can adjust the amount of air you push through vocal cords - this allows better volume control (also tone and pitch control) and thus creates a "stronger" sound. If you sing loudly but do not engage the diaphragm you sound "strained" - the volume and pitch are the same, but it sounds unstable. For example, I would recommend searching strained vs supported videos even if I hate them on principle. The "bad" vocal technique can definitely be an artistic choice, but much like modern art, many need to see you can draw still life realistically before letting you put black squares in the gallery. EDIT Obligatory not an expert or certified vocal coach so feel free to disagree with me or whatever TLDR support is breath control and it shows through the voice sounding "strong"
“What is support and how do I do it?”
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Good question.
Great singing is founded on great breathing, and breathing is in two motions, inhale and exhale.
How we inhale and how we exhale are not static things but should change dynamically depending on the intended sound or even style of music. Even when we speak a simple “hello”, we don’t fill our entire lungs with air.
Back to support.
Support is talking about the exhale motion of singing.
Support actually involves both inhale and exhale muscles. In singing we need to control the amount and pressure of breath for the intended sound so the cords can vibrate freely. The exhale muscles contract to expel air out, the inhale muscles contract to draw air into the lungs. When these muscle groups work together, we can control the amount of air so we give the voice the right amount for the intended sound. This is why support will change depending on the intended sound.
The inhale muscles work as a “checking action” and hold so as to not send too much air, while the abs engage of course to send breath to the vocal cords.
GREAT, I GET THE BASIC IDEA IN A NUTSHELL, NOW HOW DO I DO IT CORRECTLY? —————
There is a right and wrong way to set up this tension between inhale and exhale muscles.
It can be tricky to explain in Reddit, it shouldn’t be too difficult.
When we inhale, the ribcage should elevate, the back of the tongue/mouth should be relaxed, and there should be expansion in back with the back ribs. When we exhale, the ribcage comes down again, and the abs and ribs compress.
Support is simply doing this down motion of a normal exhale (down as in ribs come down) while also keeping the open and suspended expansion of the inhale.
Wrong ways include:
trying to pull the abs in and the torso up
Trying to push the abdomen out and down as if to make ourselves look pregnant
Pull in the abs and compress the torso without keeping the suspended expansion of the inhale
Keeping the expansion but holding the breath TOO MUCH and not sending enough air. ——-
The correct way again involves the downward sense of the exhale while keeping the expansion, yet having the right balance between these two systems. The downward aspect you can think of a kind of downward pressure upon the sternum while keeping your body open and erect, but while not sending too much air for the intended sound.
———
When we sing louder we need more air but still not too much. This is what the checking action of the inhale is for.
We also need to find the right balance of support for our individual voice. More lyrical voices will suffer if they try to use too much air, and big voices will suffer if not enough air is used, but ALL voices must find the right balance as too much or too little will be destructive.
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Different styles may also vary a bit. Opera actually takes a bit more isolated work of the breath support, because it necessitated the vowels and throat to be kept round and open bottom to top. It doesn’t mean more force or muscling the support, it means they actively seek to hold the open inhale position while also finding precisely the right amount of air and balance to keep the voice round and open, where other styles don’t keep the voice as open which doesn’t require as much keeping of the inhale position. ALL styles seek to find balance and easy flow of air.
***REMEMBER THAT THE POINT OF SUPPORT IS TO CONTROL THE AIRFLOW SO THAT THE THROAT CAN STAY “INVISIBLE”. YOU CAN STILL BE ENGAGING “SUPPORT” AND NOT HAVE THE CORRECT BALANCE AND THEREFORE STRAIN. AND SUPPORT IS NOT LIKE WILLFULLY HOLDING THE OPEN POSITION STIFFLY, KEEP IT NATURAL, LEARN THE CORRECT DOWN + SUSPENDED SENSATION.
Seek to feel nothing in the throat.
The absolute first thing that MUST be fixed in order to create a great singer is to fix his or her speaking voice if it isn’t perfect. The singing voice is founded upon the speaking voice, regardless of style. Even in opera the old maxim remains “si canta come si parla” (we sing as we speak). In opera, the language is Italian, and thus they sing with open Italianate vowels, and they keep that to the top. So functionally it’s mostly the top where opera differs in approach to vowel, and therefore the fundamental technical ways to breathe and speak remain the same across styles even if the adjustment of muscular balance and slight adjustments for different vowel registrations exist among different styles. One should be able to sing Red Hot Chili Peppers and then go sing an opera piece once the natural technique is there.
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What is "support"?
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Is so called support sort of like flexing your upper abs? Thanks in advance for any answers! Edit: thankyou all for your answers, this helps a bunch
Top Comment: Yes, mostly. Support basically means supporting yourself with enough air pressure against the vocal folds so they keep a steady vibration. Not always is it necessary or efficient to engage your core abdominal muscles, a high enough subglottal pressure is first of all achieved by a proper inhalation process. While singing (exhaling), pressure in your lungs will slowly drop, so you start to engage the muscles compressing your lungs to keep air flow pressure consistent. This, as a process, should be mostly natural and not too forceful. If you do a proper "ey!", like your trying to get the attention of someone across the room, you'll feel the natural supportive reaction of your body. The feeling of support should be somewhat similar to this. EDIT: As u/ichinose-san stated, to not just blow air out of your mouth and nose doing this, you of course need a proper response of your vocal folds to the outcoming air. The "breathier" the sound, the more air is escaping without doing any work in producing sound (except from backing sung notes with a slight breathy whoosh). So you if you're singing breathy, actively supporting your exhalation depletes you even faster of air. Details of the way the vocal tract answers to support can change with the genre you're singing.
What the $^@& is "support" ?!
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I've been singing for most of my life, and have had several voice teachers and a myriad of coaches with various groups. Most everybody seems enamored with the idea of "support" as a fundamental part of good singing. However, when pressed as to what people mean by "support," they give all sorts of mutually exclusive answers. Most everyone agrees that it has to do with the breath and the abdomen, but I've heard advice to try to hold the abdomen open like I'm inhaling as well as advice to pull the lower abdomen in to push out the air. Some people tell me to relax and sing like I'm speaking, others say I should always be working with the lower abs while I'm singing.
I would love to know what all you lovely talented people on this site have to say about support!
Top Comment:
The general definition for support is keeping the pressure and airflow adequate to what you are singing.
There are however many different techniques, the one most teachers work with is "appoggio" which involves using both inhaling and exhaling coordinations opposing each other.
For lighter coordinations you can keep the abs relaxed. If you are going all out, you can even use more of the torso (clavicular). That's why you can find descriptions that contradict each other.
Learning appoggio in my opinion is the best way to go because it is a bit more complex to control and will allow you to change strategies if you want to.